There are only a few more weeks left of great boating weather.

Summer can be a happy time to make great memories. For me, it is the most festive time of year next to the Thanksgiving to New Year's timeframe. There are so many barbecues and opportunities to socialize outdoors in the longer daylight hours during summer.

Besides being on the boat throughout the summer, one of my favorite summer memories on Long Island this year was having dinner at Otto's on the waterfront in Freeport. My husband Keith and I decided to try something different on Labor Day rather than joining the traditional, and popular, Sagamore Yacht Club raft-up, which usually has over 25 boats participating. At Otto's, there was a funk band and some of my favorite friends joined us. We celebrated a fun summer and to some extent began to look forward to autumn when things slow down.

A few weeks back, I suggested savoring the few warm days left. I also gave some ideas about local things to do to end the summer memorably. Some people have contacted me about the memories they made this summer. The following are snapshots of some of the great things they experienced this summer.

"We spent a week on Fire Island. Ours sons Alex and Christian brought along some of their friends. The guys surfed and we all lounged on the beach. It's such a great place right here on Long Island! Denis and I met there 20 something years ago. Also, my sister Marita and I took a beautiful ride along the North Fork to the ferry in Orient and went up to Newport, Rhode Island. It is a really nice place to see. And with boating in our fabulous Oyster Bay Harbor it's been a great summer. We really do live where people want to be!"

- Suzanne Siple, Oyster Bay

"One of the highlights of my summer was spending Mondays on the Friends of the Bay boat Baywatch with our water quality monitoring volunteers. Our volunteers are interesting people with great senses of humor, and are curious about the world around them. I especially enjoyed our student volunteers from Locust Valley High School. The other highlight was going out at a lunar high tide with Carla and Chuck Panetta, Fern Rickman, and Laurie Maas to watch horseshoe crabs spawning shortly after midnight at Centre Island Beach."

- Pat Aitken, Water Quality Monitoring Coordinator, Friends of the Bay

"My best yummy summer memory took place at a lake in New Hampshire with my sisters. We had so many fresh blueberries; we named the final day's breakfast muffins 'Blueberry Obligations'."

- Caroline Dubois, Environmental Volunteer Extraordinaire

"The Sagamore Rowing Association took about 20 [youth] crew members to the US Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana from July 19-23. They were led by their coach Troy Smith who did a terrific job coordinating the teams, getting their boats ready, watching the kids, and worrying over them like a mother hen. He's a terrific role model and coach. He really cares about the kids. The team ended up with two silver medals. The kids come from Nassau and Suffolk and really enjoy each other, the camaraderie, and rowing. All the kids did a terrific job and they were up against some heavy duty teams, like Yale and the New York Athletic Club. Sagamore Rowing is a great organization. I can't wait to be involved again next year and I can't keep Stephanie off of the water."

- Donna Olson, Locust Valley

"I have so many [memories], but I guess the one which rises to the top, is the beautiful day in August when we hosted at our home the annual "Mr. Fritz" day. We had almost 800 kids and 200 adults for a full seamless day of fun and education relating to the environment and the marine resources of Oyster Bay. As usual we had many local organizations helping such as: TR Bird & Nature Sanctuary, Volunteers for Wildlife from Caumsett Park, Flowers Oyster Company, US Merchant Marine Academy from Kings Point, East Norwich Fire Department and junior firefighters, News 12 chopper from LI Cablevision, the Waterfront Center with underwater critters and the oyster sloop Christeen. We also had a bounce castle, a waterslide, face painting, ponies, and various group games. Our special guest, Ray Negron of the New York Yankees brought with him a Yankee scout, Cesar Presbott, and a Yankee physical trainer. He signed nearly 850 copies of a book, The Boy of Steel, purchased by us and written by him about a young boy's battle with cancer with help from the Yankees. The kids had baseball seminars on the lawn with batting, fielding, and throwing instruction from the Yankees, trips around the harbor on the Merchant Marine vessels, owls, hawks, and other birds and local animals to see, as well as a great lunch supplied by Blimpie from Farmingdale on Route 110."

- Fritz Coudert, President of the Waterfront Center

"My daughter and I were searching for sea shells along the beach in Montauk and as we were admiring the peace and tranquility of the gently rolling water and fiery red sky, it reminded me how blessed we are with all that God has already given us."

- Christopher Von Zwehl, Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteer

"This summer, Oyster Bay was a fantastic body of water that truly offered the best of all worlds for boating enthusiasts. When the water was calm the harbor was blanketed by water skiers, kayakers, and rowers skimming the top of the water. When there was a breeze and some movement to the water it was great for racing sailboats, the Christeen, and other pleasure craft. Observing all of this boating activity [I saw] more fishermen than I have seen in the last five years. Hopefully, this increase in fishing indicates a sign of healthy life in our harbor. I am grateful for the opportunity to enjoy this great body of water."

- Catherine McConnell, Sagamore Rowing Association rower and volunteers for Friends of the Bay and the Waterfront Center

Usually sailing has been the highlight of our summer, but this year we added a 10-day trip to Newfoundland to see amazing little plants. We were with a group of botanists -- some expert and some, like us, just learning. There were 18 of us with an experienced tour leader who were scrambling over some truly spectacular terrain. Getting to know new friends, both human and plant, was an unforgettable experience.

- Bill Titus, Locust Valley

Naturally we may feel a bit sad that fall is here. It actually felt like autumn came a few weeks early. After record-breaking heat in July much of August and September were so cool. Sometimes I wish we had summer weather all year round, but the holidays and traditions that are woven into every season give us all things to look forward to.

I look forward to hearing from you about your autumn and winter plans, especially if they relate to something outdoors, environmental or boating issues, and thoughts about improving our community. I can be reached at 946-9464 or Jaime.VanDyke@gmail.com.